Acceptance
by QuickSpinner
Summary: It was the smell that did it. No matter what he did, Guy couldn't stop smelling it. He fell asleep with the smell of tar in his nose. He woke screaming.
1. Not Okay

It was the smell that did it. The first thing Guy had done when they'd made it down to the beach was wade out into the big water and scrub his skin with sand until it was raw, scouring away the sticky tar. It took some convincing to get Grug to do the same, but eventually, both men were mostly clean of the deadly black stuff.

But Guy couldn't stop smelling it. Even though he built a big fire, and the forest was full of plant smells - some he recognized, some he didn't - he still fell asleep with the smell of tar in his nose.

He woke screaming, small, hard hands shaking him. His own hands came up in reflex and he grabbed blindly, causing his attacker to yelp in pain as his nails dug into the soft flesh that covered hard muscle. "Guy, it's me!" Eep's voice only confused him. "Wake up!"

Suddenly a meaty hand gripped the back of his neck, lifted him off the ground, and shook him until his teeth rattled. He stopped screaming. "Wake up!" boomed a deep voice, and Guy's eyes finally focused. Grug's face hovered in front of him. "Guy, listen to me. You're all right. Everything is okay. You're having a dream."

Guy blinked as his mind finally caught up with what the big man was telling him. His breath came ragged and hoarse. "Dream," he huffed, putting his hands over his face as his brain worked frantically to separate past from present, fantasy from reality. "It was a dream. Everybody's okay?"

"Everybody's here, Guy, just look," Grug turned Guy towards the fire, and Guy counted five more faces staring at him, and Belt's eyes shining off to one side. Guy went limp with relief, all of the fight draining out of him. Grug put him down. Guy's legs couldn't hold him; his knees buckled and he sank to the ground. Eep hopped up to crouch in front of him, her face worried. Guy touched her face, and then put his hands on her strong shoulders. "You're really okay?"

She smiled and reached a hand to brush back his hair. "I'm fine." Something caught his eye. Guy grabbed her wrist and moved her arm into the light. Five long scratches welled blood from her shoulders to her elbows. He sighed, and then coughed. His throat was rough.

"I'm sorry," he said, his voice cracking. "Eep, I'm so sorry." She had matching scratches on her other arm.

"It's okay," Eep shrugged. "You didn't mean to. They'll be gone in a day." She tilted her head and touched his face. "What scared you so badly?"

"Nothing," Guy said shortly, pushing himself back to his feet. "Just a dream. I'm fine." He turned his back on her and crossed his arms, trying not to shiver. "I'm sorry I woke everyone. Just—just go back to sleep. I'm going to take a walk, get some—some air." Belt chittered and hopped towards him. Guy reached a hand down and pulled the little animal up onto his shoulder. Belt cooed as Guy headed into the trees, burrowing into his neck.

Guy heard Eep try to follow him, and heard Grug send her gruffly back to bed. _He knows_, Guy thought, his emotions a jumble. _He knows what I was seeing_. It made him uncomfortable to be pitied by this man who didn't even like him.

He felt damp and sticky with sweat. He put Belt down, then waded out into the water a short distance, and splashed it up over his head and arms. It was cold, and that helped, washing away the last clinging tendrils of sleep and nightmare. He sloshed out of the water and threw himself down on the sand, blowing his breath out slowly as he stared up into the sky. It was getting lighter; it must be close to dawn. Belt cuddled up beside his head, cooing, and Guy reached up to stroke his old friend. He closed his eyes and breathed deep again. The salt smell of the big water was almost enough to drown out the smell of tar.

Almost.

He heard a familiar pop-crackle behind him, and sat up quickly, twisting to look. The torch blinded his eyes for a minute.

"I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

If he'd expected anyone, it was Eep, but the voice was Ugga's – gentle and quiet. She planted the torch in the sand and came to sit near him. "You don't have to talk if you don't want to," she said. "But it's not safe for you to be out here alone without anything." She laid his knife and a shell in the sand beside him.

So like a mom. It was an effort to swallow the lump in his throat so he could say, "Thanks."

Ugga reached out and smoothed his hair back. Guy closed his eyes. If he tried – no. His mother's hand had been delicate and long-fingered, like his own. Ugga's hand, like Eep's, was wide and strong. But it felt nice anyway.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked.

"No," Guy said, his voice breaking. Tears were beginning to seep from his closed eyes. Belt crawled into his lap, putting his long arms around Guy's waist.

Ugga reached over to him and pulled him against her, drawing his head down on her chest. "You don't have to talk. But you don't have to be by yourself, either. I know I can't be your mother, but I'm here. You don't have to be strong. There's nothing wrong with missing them." Guy's breath hitched.

"They were supposed to be here," he whispered. "I wasn't supposed to do this alone." And suddenly he was sobbing, crying like a little boy while Ugga's strong arm circled his shoulders and she made soft, comforting sounds.

He tried to stop several times, tried to pull away, but Ugga's slight squeeze on his shoulder set him off again every time. Eventually, his sobs subsided and he sat curled against her, exhausted. He felt awful on the outside, his throat and eyes sore, and inside he just felt...tired. Ugga was warm against him, her cheek against the top of his head.

"I know you've been alone for a long time," she said, "But you don't have to do everything by yourself anymore. You're part of our family now. If something's hurting you, it hurts all of us."

Belt cooed, reaching up to pat Guy's face.

"It was such a long time ago," Guy said thickly. "I thought I was okay."

Ugga stroked his hair again. "Sometimes it's like that, when you lose somebody. You're okay until suddenly, one day, you're not. And it's okay to not be okay. You be as not okay as you need to be for as long as it takes. We're here for you."

Guy had to squeeze his eyes shut again. "Thanks, Ugga."

"Are you ready to go back?" Ugga asked. Guy nodded without lifting his head. After a moment, he stiffly unfolded himself and stood, offering a hand up to Ugga. She didn't need it, but took it anyway, and got to her feet. Guy reached down again to pull Belt up. The little animal settled himself around Guy's waist, and squeaked a reminder. Guy picked up his knife and shell. Ugga picked up the torch, which was much shorter than it had been, and they made their way back to the camp, Ugga's hand resting lightly on Guy's back.

He felt eyes on him when they walked back into the firelight; heard Grug and Ugga talking softly. Eep reached out to him as he walked by her. He caught her hand and squeezed it, but he couldn't look at her just then. Guy went to the little hollow where he'd been sleeping, and settled himself down. Belt cuddled in his arms, cooing softly. Mercifully, he didn't dream again.


	2. Space

_AN: I had planned for 3 chapters in this story, but this one was getting long and giving me a lot of trouble, so I've gone ahead and split it into two chapters. I did a lot of rewriting before I finally found my rhythm here. Chapters 3 & 4 are almost done, so hopefully they'll flow relatively quickly. Thank you everyone who has reviewed/followed/faved this story! It really is encouraging to see you like what I do. Hope you enjoy this chapter as well._

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Guy's daydreams of his first morning in Tomorrow had never included gritty eyes, a sore throat, and skin gone itchy and dry from sand and salt. It'd been a long time since he'd cried like that; now he remembered why he stopped. His mind felt as sluggish as the rest of him, and it was an effort to wake – an effort he was sorely tempted to forgo. But, the Croods were up and, in their attempts to be quiet, they made more than enough noise to make sleep impossible to sleep. He finally dragged himself up, rubbing carefully at his tender eyes. He'd have given just about anything for a dive in a nice clear lake right then, even a cold one.

Everyone was grouped around the fire in the morning chill. Guy rubbed his own arms and went to join them. The conversation stopped as he approached, and the Croods all turned to look at him. He glanced around at them, a little unnerved by the attention, and then it struck him. They were worried about him.

That was new.

A part of him wanted to laugh. This was Tomorrow. This was his dream, the place where things were supposed to be better. After all he'd made it through to get here, to have someone worrying about him now struck him as ridiculous.

"Um...morning," he said, picking his way to an open place.

"You look terrible," Gran commented, and Eep elbowed her.

"Gran!"

"What? He does."

"Mom," Ugga sighed. Gran harumphed. Eep rolled her eyes and moved around the fire to sit beside Guy.

"How do you feel?" she asked, concern and sympathy in her face.

"Probably about as good as I look," he said, his own voice subdued. He really didn't feel like talking to anyone this morning. He needed some time to sort out the jumbled knot of feelings in his chest. It irritated him to feel so disorganized.

Eep put a hand on his arm. He shrugged it off. "It was just a dream, Eep, I'll be fine."

"Maybe you will be," she answered, pulling her hand back. He tried not to see the hurt in her eyes. "But you're not fine yet, are you?"

Guy sighed through his teeth and didn't answer.

"We were just talking about what we should do today," Eep said, sitting back and wrapping her arms around her legs.

"Yeah?" Guy rubbed a hand over his face, trying to care and mostly failing. Maybe a lake was asking too much. A puddle big enough to dunk his face in would do.

"I...thought you would have a plan," Eep said slowly, studying him.

Guy laughed. "A plan? No. No plan. Follow the sun. Make it to Tomorrow. That's as far as my instructions went."

"Instructions?" Eep looked confused.

Guy shook his head. "Never mind. Look, I don't know, okay? I spent all my effort on getting here. I—never really thought about what came next. So no, I'm pretty much all out of plans." He knew he sounded bitter and harsh, and he tried to smile, to soften his words somehow, but he wasn't sure he managed it. "Sorry to disappoint."

Eep looked at him for a long moment, but he wouldn't meet her eyes. "I thought you would be happy, to finally be here."

"I am. I will be. Look, Eep – I just need to work through some things, all right? It's...complicated. Can I just—have a little space, please? For once?"

She stared at him, and he stared at the ground. Finally, she got up and walked away without saying anything else.

"Croods," Grug called. "Breakfast formation. Time to find out what there is to eat in this place." He glanced at Guy. "You coming?"

Guy shook his head. "Go ahead."

Grug jerked a nod and herded the rest of the family away.

Eep paused at the edge of the clearing and looked back at him. He gave her a halfhearted wave and looked away. He didn't see her leave.

Just like that, he was alone. The solitude both helped, and didn't. It was a relief not to be looked at or fussed over, to have the peace he needed to work through whatever it was that was wrong withhim – yet a cold thread of fear trickled down his spine. He tried to ignore it.

Guy looked down at Belt. "Just you and me today. Like old times. Only, y'know, without the constantly running from death part."

Belt chortled, and Guy leaned back on his elbows, staring up through the trees and trying to think. Eep was right. They did need a plan. Trouble was, the only thing Guy knew how to do was run. He didn't have any idea how to stay.

Thinking quickly sank into brooding. Belt reached out and smacked him lightly.

"Ow," Guy muttered, rubbing his face. "What was that for?"

Belt launched into a stern lecture. Guy winced. "Harsh, buddy."

Belt blew a raspberry, and then whistled a question.

"I don't know, I guess—" Guy sighed, stroking his oldest friend. "I've been running almost my whole life. Maybe I just don't know how to stop. What am I supposed to do now, anyway?"

Belt poked him in the ribs. "Ow," muttered Guy. "I mean, I know, there's the easy things, we need food and water and shelter, but what then?" He pursed his lips. "They were supposed to be here with me," he muttered. "They weren't supposed to die. I wasn't meant to do this alone. Not—not any of it." He swallowed. "I wish I could just—talk to them. I wish I didn't have to do it all myself."

Belt's answering purr trilled upward. He crawled up behind Guy's head and grabbed him on both cheeks. "Hey!" Belt made him raise his head from his hands and pointed him in the direction the Croods had gone.

Guy winced. "I was pretty awful to Eep this morning, wasn't I?" Belt rrrrr'd and gave Guy a reproachful look. Guy sighed. "I know. I'll make it up to her later, okay?"

_If there was a later_, the fear whispered, finally taking form. Guy's heart leapt into his throat. He was an idiot. Hadn't he learned once not to let people he cared about out of his sight? If something happened to her, to them, and his last memory was this morning—

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

He was on his feet and at the edge of the camp before he could stop himself. Then he turned back and paced across width the camp. Following them wouldn't do any good. He covered more ground in a day than any of them easily, but he had trained for distance, while they were made for speed. They were far faster than he was across short distances. He had no hope of catching them now. He could use a shell, but if they got back and found out that he'd called them just because he was _lonely_...

Belt climbed from his waist up to hang around his neck, and cooed, patting Guy's face with one clawed paw.

"They're fine," Guy told him. "They're fine."

Belt gave an encouraging whistle.

Guy threw himself back down near the fire, folded his legs and arms, and tried to think.

He raised his eyes and looked around the campsite full of foot, paw, and claw prints, at a fire twice the size of any he had ever built for himself, and the depression in the sandy turf where the Crood family sleep pile had been. The smaller one off to one side, where Eep had lain. Ugga's voice sounded in his head, the words she'd said last night that he had barely listened to, over and over_.__ We're here for you. You don't have to do it by yourself. You don't have to be strong. You're part of our family._

"But they need me," he said quietly. "They need me to be strong. There's so much they don't know, they don't understand—" And the fear surged again, settled into a heavy cold lump in the pit of his stomach. Why had he let them go without him?

Belt purred and leaned around to give Guy a knowing look.

"I...need them too?" Guy said softly, looking at the sloth. Ugga's gentle voice and strong hands, Grug's quiet confidence and encouragement in the tar pit, Gran's sharp eyes and pointed words, Thunk's good intentions and sweet nature, Sandy's enthusiasm, and Eep...he couldn't think about Eep and everything she meant to him, not after the way he'd spoken to her this morning. _You have to come back_, he thought out at the forest, _you have to come back so I can make it right_.

Belt was right; he needed them, he needed not to be alone, and for all the things he could teach them, there was one thing that they knew that he didn't – how to make a home. But the thing was, he didn't know how. He didn't know how to accept what they were offering, to take down the wall between them that he couldn't seem to get rid of.

"I wish I could just talk to Mom and Dad, just for a minute," he muttered, only half talking to Belt. "I wish I could just ask them for advice. I wish—I wish I could tell them that I made it." His throat closed and he shut his eyes. They were gone, and the only guidance they could give him were the words he'd carried so long.

_Don't hide. Live. Follow the sun. You'll make it to Tomorrow._

"Don't hide," Guy repeated to himself slowly, his eyes opening.

Then he raised his eyes and looked at the forest around him, through the trees at the golden beach beyond, shielding his eyes to look towards the sun that sat just above the water. He held out his hand, covering it, as if to take the bright disk in his palm.

"Don't hide," he whispered. "Live." Belt cooed and crawled back around to drop into Guy's lap. Belt grinned up at him, and Guy grinned back. "Come on," Guy said, getting to his feet, "If we don't want to eat whatever they're bringing back raw, we better do something about this fire."

By the time the Croods returned, triumphantly carrying the carcass of a tall four-legged animal Guy had never seen before, the sun was well overhead. Guy had scraped out a wide pit around the fire and spread the embers with a stick. He had even found some branches and set up a spit. He looked up as they came into camp. He did a quick mental count. One, two, three, four, five...where was Eep?

She launched herself out of a tree, flying through the air to land in a crouch not far from him. His shoulders slumped a little in relief. Everyone accounted for.

Eep straightened and glanced at him, her expression guarded. Guy pretended not to notice.

"Wow," he said, looking at the kill and then grinning at Eep. "I thought I was being optimistic, but now I hope the fire's big enough."

She gave him a tentative smile. He touched her hand as she passed him. "I'm glad you're back," he told her when she turned back to face him.

"You missed a great hunt," she said, a real grin breaking out over her face.

"Can't wait to hear about it." He looked around. "Where are the pets?"

"Chunky made his own kill," Grug said proudly. "They'll wander back when they're done."

Guy offered Ugga his knife a little shyly. She smiled back as she took it and used it to skin the creature. Guy showed Thunk how the spit worked.

Tension in the camp heightened as the meat roasted, the scent making every mouth water (some more obviously than others). Guy carefully cut enough meat for himself and pretended to examine it, although he was already sure the meat was totally cooked. The pretense gave him enough time to shuffle out of the way before he announced, "It's done," and the Croods charged.

There wasn't much left by the time the family was done eating, but everyone had had enough to eat, which was about as much as one could hope for when feeding seven people, Guy supposed. Especially when five of them ate like total savages. His eyes slid to Grug, who was just now getting around to tearing some meat off the carcass. For such a large man, who surely had an equally large appetite, Grug showed a surprising amount of restraint at mealtime. He didn't fight for his food, taking whatever the rest of the family left or would let him have. As a result, he was always the last one left eating.

Aside from an intensely stubborn streak, a pathological need to be in charge, and a dose of pride proportional to his size – Grug really was a good dad.

Guy didn't look anything like his own father, who'd been taller, broader, and generally bigger than him in every way. Guy had his mother's high cheekbones, dark coloring, and slight build. His resemblance to his father was all on the inside; exuberant manner, natural curiosity, constantly-bubbling creativity. An occasional tendency towards more enthusiasm than sense.

Guy shook himself out of those thoughts. "Eep?" he said, glancing to his side.

"Mm?" Eep's mouth was full. None of the Croods really had much use for mealtime conversation.

"Did you find any water while you were out there today?"

Eep swallowed. "Yeah," she said, eyeing him suspiciously around her food.

"Can you tell me where?"

"Easier to show you," she grunted. She glanced back at him. "If you want me to."

He hesitated, knowing he didn't deserve any favors after this morning. "If you don't mind. When you're done."

She shrugged and Guy looked away, trying not to wince, as she polished off the rest of her food with a ferocity and speed that was really quite disturbing.

"Come on," she said, standing up. "It's not far."

Grug looked up from his food as they passed. "Shells?" he said with his mouth full. Eep and Guy both raised theirs. "Be back before dark," Grug muttered, going back to his meal. "And be careful!" he called after them.

Eep took to the trees as soon as they were out of camp, leaping from branch to branch where she could, and only occasionally joining him on the ground. Guy wondered if she ever got tired. They hadn't gone as far as he expected when the trees opened to a small pool fed by an even smaller stream.

It wasn't quite the crystal clear mountain lake he had imagined in the morning, but the water was clear enough and didn't smell of stagnation. Too small to support them for any length of time, he saw immediately. Eep sat on a rock at the edge, her knees pulled up to her chest and her arms wrapped around them. Guy bent gratefully, scooping the water up in his hands to drink, and then bathing his tired eyes. The water was cold enough to make his hands numb, and he briefly wondered where it was coming from. Despite the cold, he splashed it up over his head and arms.

"You'll freeze," Eep observed, as he gasped at the first slosh.

"Better frozen than a dried up husk," he shot her a half-grin. "I haven't felt this dry since I crossed your desert."

"What's a—" Eep started to ask, and then stopped. Guy felt a stab of guilt. One thing at a time, he told himself, and concentrated on his cold splash-bath. His flesh pimpled and shivered, but the cold water was soothing on the places where his skin was raw from yesterday's sand scrub, and he no longer felt coated with salt.

He almost felt human again. "Oookay," he sighed, standing up. "Back to the fire. The warm fire." He wrapped his arms around himself as Eep hopped off her rock.

"Told you," she said matter-of-factly, folding her arms.

"Worth it," he said, shivering. Eep shrugged and walked past him. "Eep, wait." He took a deep breath as she turned. "I'm sorry about this morning," he said, fighting the urge to look at the ground. "I was tired and upset and I shouldn't have taken out on you."

It wasn't half of what he should have said, but that was all it took, and he could see it the instant she forgave him. Her shoulders went back, her expression lightened, and she just...brightened all over. Guy sighed, hugely relieved. He'd seen how Eep could hold a grudge.

"Come on," she said, shoving him awkwardly. "Let's get you back to that fire. She paused, leaning in to look closely at his arm. "You're all bumpy."

Her warm breath on his skin wasn't going to help that situation any, so he nudged her. "Freezing," he reminded, although it was getting on to late afternoon, the warmest part of the day, and he doubted he would be cold for long, even under the trees.

"Oh. Right." She stayed beside him this time, and his hand found hers as they walked back to the camp.


	3. Don't Hide

_AN: As promised! One more chapter to go. Loving the reviews, thank you all!_

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Guy spent the rest of the day walking the fringes of the camp, keeping one eye on the sun as it crept across the sky. He felt Eep watching him and tried to settle himself, but he just ended up on his feet again. _Don't hide_, Guy thought to himself, over and over. _Don't hide, don't hide, don't hide_...

Finally, it was nearly sunset, and the family was finally settling, drawing near the fire one by one and settling themselves comfortably around it. Guy joined them, and waited for a break in the conversation.

When one came, Guy cleared his throat. "Uh—how about a story?"

"I'm a little tired for a story tonight," Grug sighed, stretching his back, which popped alarmingly.

"Actually, I was thinking maybe I could tell one," Guy said tentatively. "Um...if you don't mind, Grug."

"Yeah!" Thunk said, and the other Croods scrambled to surround Guy.

Grug rolled his eyes. "Be my guest."

Guy waited, while they all settled themselves around him. He looked at the ground until they stopped moving. When they were ready, he took a deep breath and let it out slowly, looking around at each of them. _Don't hide_.

"Once upon a time," he began, "There was a tribe of nomads – a group of families that wandered over the land," he clarified, seeing the looks of confusion in his audience. "They stayed together for protection, and when they couldn't find any more food in an area, they moved on to another. Sometimes they ran into other people, who didn't want them around and attacked them, or kidnapped their women and children, so they wore markings on their bodies," he touched a stripe on his arm. "So strangers would see that they were one people, that they belonged to each other, and they all stood together as one. When the others saw that they – the marked tribe, I mean – were many, the others were scared, and left them alone." The family gazed at him in rapt attention – even Grug, though his expression was odd. Guy cleared his throat and continued, dropping his eyes to the ground.

"One day the marked tribe came to a big salt water, like this one." He gestured across the beach to the lapping waves. "There were no other people there. The shore was rocky and the winds were terrible, but they looked, and they watched, and they learned how to get food from the big water. They stayed and they stayed, and still there was plenty of food. So finally, they found a place near the big water, and built shelters to keep them from the wind. They made a home there, and called it a village, shared everything they had amongst themselves, and decided not to wander anymore." He took a deep breath.

"Now in this village," he continued, "There was a small family, just a father," his hand drifted up to touch the middle shell on his necklace, "and a mother," he touched the rounded shell, "and a little boy," he touched the smallest. "They loved each other very much. But the nomad spirit was strong in them, and even though they loved their tribe and their village, sometimes they just had to wander, to go and see what was out there. The father called it 'exploring.' Some people in the village were angry with the father, because they thought he should be helping them with the work of the village. But he took care of his little family, and provided everything they needed, and sometimes when they went exploring, the family found and brought back new things that were useful, so the village mostly left him alone."

"One day, while the family was out exploring, they saw something terrible. Where once there had been a beautiful valley, suddenly there was nothing. The ground had split, and swallowed everything, and it spit fire and lava as they watched. The father knew it was not safe for his family to be there, so he took them back to the village. The next day, he went back, and found that even more ground had been swallowed up. This time he ran back to the village. The father told everyone that this horrible thing was coming, that they had to leave the village and run away." Guy looked up at his audience again but soon dropped his eyes back to the ground. Somehow, it was just harder to talk with them looking at him like that. He felt Eep move closer and take his hand, and his fingers curled around hers, but he still couldn't look up.

"No one believed him," Guy said at last, his voice thick. "The father argued and argued and begged them to come see, but they wouldn't listen. Finally the father came home. He looked at his little family. Then he made them pack up everything that they could carry, and that night, they left the village together. They travelled all night by the light of the full moon. The father didn't know where he was going, he only knew that he had to get his family away. The mother and the little boy trusted him, even though they were frightened by the terrible sounds they heard in the dark, sounds they had never heard before. Somehow, they made it through the night. When the sun came up, they looked back – and everything was gone. The End had come in the dark, and the village by the big water was gone. There was nothing but steam and smoke."

"The mother cried. The father stood and looked at the End for a long time. Then he picked up the little boy and took the mother's hand, and put their backs to the destruction. 'Where are we going?' asked the mother. 'We're going to follow the sun,' said the father. So that's what they did. Every day, they covered as much ground as they could, walking into the sunrise. Sometimes they would leave the End behind for a little while, but it always caught up. It always kept coming. One day – it got too close. The mother and father –" Guy stopped, glancing at Grug and then away. He just couldn't. "They died. And the little boy was alone. He ran and he ran in the dark, hearing sounds all around him, until finally he couldn't run any more, and he sat and cried until the sun came up. He wasn't big, and he wasn't strong, and he was so, so scared." Guy squeezed his eyes shut. Eep's hand tightened around his. Guy pulled his hand away and stood, turning his back on them, trying to find the words to go on.

But it was Grug who spoke first. "Even though the boy was small, he was smart," he said, as the family turned to look at him. "He had a brain, and he had ideas. And even though he was scared – he was very brave. His mother and father had told him to live. They told him to follow the sun. So that's what he did. He got up, and he kept going."

Guy smiled, his back still to them, and took up the story again, picking at the cords around his right arm as he spoke. "The little boy watched – everything. He watched the animals around him. He learned from them what was good to eat and what would make him sick. He watched the weather, and learned when to take cover. He looked at the rocks and stones, and learned which ones he could use." Guy touched the knife hanging at his side. "He made a lot of mistakes. Sometimes he got hurt." He tugged at the cords on his arm again, and pulled them off, along with the rabbit hide underneath that covered his arm. He shook slightly as he turned and held his arm up to the light so they could see the long, broken, jagged line of the pitted scar running from his wrist to his elbow – not because he was afraid of what they would think, but because the day he'd gotten that scar was by far the closest he'd ever come to a bloody, painful death, and he never thought about it if he could help it. There was a collective gasp from his listeners, but Guy kept going. "Sometimes he got hurt," he repeated, "Sometimes the End almost caught him. But he kept moving forward. He kept believing in Tomorrow." Belt poked him with a chitter, and Guy smiled. "One day he found a little baby animal clinging to its dead mother. And even though the boy was hungry, he wasn't so little any more, and he knew how to catch his own food. He didn't have to eat the baby animal. He felt sorry for it. So he took the little animal, and it held on to him the same way it held to its mother. The boy fed it, and the little animal grew, and soon they were good friends." Belt cooed, wrapping himself back around Guy. Guy scratched the sloth's head. "Sometimes, the boy met other people. He told them that the End was coming, but – no one ever believed him. So he kept going, following the sun...alone." Guy raised his eyes to find Eep. "Then one day, the boy met a girl...and his whole life changed." He smiled at her, the first real smile he had mustered since the dream. "But that's another story."

"That was a sad story," Thunk said in awe, but Eep was smiling back up at Guy, and his breath hitched from something that had nothing to do with sadness.

Still, he tore his eyes away from her and looked at Grug, and then Ugga. Grug nodded slowly, and Ugga smiled. "Well, time to get ready for bed, everybody," Grug called. He stood up, and most of the rest of the family went with him.

Eep didn't move, and Guy came back to sit next to her. "How're your arms?" he asked softly.

"No big deal," she said, showing him. The scratches he'd given her were nothing more than thin pink lines. "It'll take more than your stubby little claws to put a dent in me."

Guy chuckled. "I believe it."

"Are you okay now?" she asked, moving closer to him.

"Yeah," Guy said thoughtfully. "Yeah, I think I am."

Eep smiled, putting a hand on his arm. "Good," she said, and laid her cheek on his shoulder. Guy leaned his head on hers.

"Sorry," he whispered. "About this morning. Again."

He felt rather than saw her smile. "That was nothing. Wait till Dad has a bad night's sleep."

Guy chuckled. They were quiet for a long moment before Eep spoke again.

"Thank you," she said softly, reaching to run her fingertips over that awful scar. "For the story."

"Thank you," he said, "For believing me." He took her hand and laced his fingers through hers.

They sat there for a long time before Grug's voice came out of the dark. "Eep! Bedtime."

Eep groaned. "Fine, I'm coming," she grumbled, straightening. She pushed herself to her feet, and then looked back at Guy.

"Sweet dreams," she said, touching his shoulder.

"Yeah. You too," he smiled back. Eep trotted off.

Guy wrapped his arm back up and sat staring into the fire for a while, thinking, before he finally got up, banked it, and went to his own hollow. That night, when he slept, he didn't dream at all.


	4. Claiming

_Sorry this took so long. Even though it was mostly written, I ended up rewriting a lot of it. I almost chucked the whole thing and started over, but I think I've mostly achieved what I wanted to. Thank you, thank you, thank you again for everybody who's been reading this story and faving, following, reviewing, etc. I appreciate it so much!_

_I did a minimal amount of research into henna dying and tattoos for this chapter, and I know this isn't completely accurate, but it gave me a foundation to work from._

* * *

Guy and Belt got up early the next day, just as the sky was turning pink over the water, and set off on their own. He searched the jungle until he finally found what he was looking for – a handful of small yellow fruits, and a good-sized concave rock.

He got back just as the rest of the family was getting up. While they grumbled and argued and went about their morning routine, he sat at the base of a tree with the bowl-shaped rock in his lap. Belt handed him a small folded skin, and he opened it, taking out some of the dried leaves wrapped up inside. He found a rounded rock that fit his hand and used it to crush and grind the leaves into a fine powder. _Tools_, he thought to himself as he worked. _I need to make us some proper tools. Everybody should have a knife. I can make some spears and axes. Everyone needs new clothes, too, so we'll need hide scrapers and..._ His thoughts ran quickly as his hands moved without conscious thought.

He was so lost in his thoughts that Eep's voice startled him. "What's that?" He looked up to find her face inches from his. "Is it food?" she wanted to know.

"No," he smiled. "I'll show you when it's ready."

"What are these for?" she asked, picking up one of the fruits. She sniffed it. "_Smells _like food," she commented.

Guy suppressed a grin. "You can try it," he said as casually as he could manage, "but you won't like it."

As usual with Eep, curiosity overcame caution. If she noticed the smile lurking at the corners of Guy's mouth, it only made her more curious. She broke open the peel, and tore a slice out of the insides. She sniffed it again, glancing at Guy, who was having a hard time keeping a straight face. She put the piece in her mouth and bit down.

Guy erupted into laughter at the look on her face. She spit the thing out, her eyes watering. "Ugh!" she managed to say. She scowled at Guy, who was laughing so hard he could hardly breathe, and hauled back to throw the remaining fruit at him.

"Waitwaitwait," he gasped, holding up his hands. "I need that. And I did warn you." He tried to stifle his laughter, but based on Eep's expression she was obviously still tasting the sour fruit, and he finally had to look at the ground to get himself under control.

Eep growled. "You did that on purpose."

Guy grinned. "Hey, I told you you wouldn't like it. I didn't _make_ you eat it." He held up his rock bowl. "Here, squeeze the rest of it into this. _Slowly_," he added as she raised the fruit over the bowl.

His warning had come just in time; instead of simply closing her fist and spraying the juice everywhere, Eep gradually tightened her grip until the juice ran out over her fingers and down into the rock bowl.

"What is this for?" she asked again.

"It's dye," he said, keeping his eyes down. "It stains skin and turns it brown."

"Like yours?" she asked, reaching to touch a stripe on his arm.

"Yeah," he said, "It's temporary. It fades after a while, and has to be reapplied."

"Yours don't look faded."

"Mine are still fresh," he said. He glanced up at her. She looked confused.

"Then why are you making dye?" she asked slowly.

"I—" he flushed, and then looked up as a shadow fell across them. "Grug. Hey," he said, trying to smile as the caveman came to stand beside his daughter.

"What's that?" Grug asked, frowning down at him. Guy swallowed.

"Well, you know, I was thinking," he started cautiously. "It's possible that we're not the only ones who made it here. We might run into other people eventually, and if that's the case, I just thought...we should look like we belong to each other. Like we…stand together as one." He swallowed again, hard, trying to meet Grug's eyes. "The stripes also make it easier to blend in with the trees," he added lamely.

Grug and Eep both stared at him. For a few painful heartbeats, neither of them spoke. Eep looked at her father.

Grug smiled. "Let's do it."

The breath Guy was holding came out in a rush. He looked down to hide the emotion in his face. "Okay," he said, trying to keep his voice even. "I'll have it ready soon."

He painted them all, one by one, according to his best memory of his tribe's markings. He spent the most time on Grug, partly because of the man's size and partly because his status as head of the family entitled him to the most complex marks.

"What happened?" Grug asked gruffly as Guy worked. "With your arm."

Guy's fingers stilled for a moment.

"You don't have to talk about it," Grug said almost immediately, obviously trying to sound like he didn't care. "I was just curious."

"It's fine," Guy kept painting. "It's not a long story. I was out on the plain. Something was stalking me and I missed it. Some kind of cat – a lot smaller than Chunky, but bigger than me. When it jumped me I threw my arms up. Big teeth, little arm. That pretty much sums it up."

"How'd you get away?"

"Luck," Guy admitted, dipping his fingers back in the bowl that Belt held for him. "It knocked me back against a log and there was a hollow place under it. I managed to get enough of me in it that I could protect myself with my knife. Gave it a few good scratches and convinced it I wasn't worth the effort. I'd be dead if it weren't for Belt, though. He finished tying up my arm after I passed out." It was a drastically simplified version of the story, but Guy's hands were starting to shake as it was.

"You_ are_ lucky," Grug shook his head. "Lucky you can use it after that."

Guy smiled grimly. "That was a bad day. Anyway, I started wearing the arm wraps after that. Not enough to stop something really big or determined, but they give a little protection at least."

"How old were you?"

"Uh," Guy had to consider. "Twelve, I think."

Grug grunted. "Too young." His big hand came down on Guy's shoulder and squeezed. "I think your family would be proud of you."

Guy looked up at him in surprise. "They loved you very much," Grug told him. "I know, because you made it. They raised you to be strong and smart, to survive. They'd be so proud of you."

Guy looked away. "I'm not strong."

"Maybe not here," Grug nudged one of Guy's skinny arms. "But you're strong here," he prodded Guy's chest. "That's the kind of strength that comes when someone loves and believes in you. It made you strong enough to get here – and strong enough to bring us with you."

Guy didn't know what to say to that, so he just went back to painting. "I'm glad you came," he said finally. "All of you." He stood back and waved his hand vaguely. "Uh, I think that does it. You're done."

Grug rolled his eyes. "Finally."

Ugga was next. "Does this mean you're going to stay with us?" she asked.

He looked up, startled. "What?"

"Well, we never talked about what would happen once we got here," Ugga said. "I meant it when you said you were one of us, but I didn't know whether you planned to stay or if you thought you might—move on." Her gaze flicked to Eep and back to him.

He looked steadily at her. "I'm not going anywhere. This is my family. I'm not leaving any of you. Nobody gets left behind, ever again." He felt his face warming, and dropped his gaze back to what he was doing. She patted his knee.

He kept Gran laughing as he worked on her; he hadn't had anybody to share his jokes with in a long time and Gran, crusty old survivor that she was, clearly loved to laugh.

Painting Eep was harder than he expected, partly because she seemed completely incapable of sitting still and partly because he couldn't explain to her that his face was red because in any other reality this would only have been done by her father – or her mate. The others were family, but he couldn't make it that simple with Eep.

"That tickles," she said, twitching her thigh away from him for the fifth time. Belt chortled. Guy shot his pet a dark look.

"You're not helping," he told the sloth, who looked at him with wide, innocent eyes.

"Just hold still, so I can finish this," he muttered, glancing in Grug's direction. She followed his gaze to her father's glare, and gave an exaggerated sigh, letting her head fall back dramatically, but she sat relatively patiently until he was done.

Thankfully Thunk and Sandy were so young that it took no time at all to do their simple markings.

He had to remind them several times that day not to scratch the paste off, especially Grug, who was so liberally slathered with it. Finally, in the evening, Guy brushed the dried paste off of Eep's arm and examined the markings.

"It doesn't look like yours," Eep said, craning her neck to look at the orange stripe.

"It will," Guy promised. "It'll turn brown in the next couple of days. You can take the rest of it off now."

"Finally," Grug muttered, immediately reaching to flake the dried paste off his arms.

Guy sat back on his heels and watched as the Croods brushed themselves off, revealing the orange stripes. He took a deep breath, and blew it out slowly, as emotion swelled up inside him. They were weird and – well, crude, but...they cared about him. They wanted him. They had claimed him, and allowed him to claim them. This was his tribe...his family.

"How does it look?" Eep wanted to know, looking back at him.

"Good," he managed to say, smiling, and looked away quickly, eyes suddenly stinging.

A moment later her hand slipped into his. "Are you okay?" she said.

Guy closed his hand tight around hers. "Better than okay. I'm...home." He took another deep breath, and looked around at their rudimentary camp. "We have a lot of work to do," he observed, reaching down to scratch Belt.

"Rrrr rrr!" Belt rumbled encouragingly, with a slothy grin.

"What do you have in mind?" Eep asked.

Guy smiled back at her. "I think that's something we should all talk about. As a family."


End file.
